Really nice plant! Can't wait for you to update with pics of fruit! Maybe in a year? How did you decide on this variety? Have you tried them?

I've read some good things about it and its one that was hard to find locally. I now have the following citrus.

Washington Navel

Cara Cara

Moro

Kishu

Okitsu Wase Satsuma

Owari Satsuma

Honey

Lee x Nova

Page

Tahoe Gold

Shasta God

Yosemite Gold

Gold Nugget

Tango

Pixie

Meyer

Libson

Variegated Eureka

Bearss

Oh my goodness. Of those that are producing, which could you NOT BE WITHOUT? Have you tried Mandarinquat? I got a bag at the store and LOVED THEM! If you like kumquats at all, these are like kumquats on steroids. Packed with flavor and super addictive. Probably not for everyone though.

I have not tried one just going on what I have read from others who have tried them.

Nick, a variety that I would recommend to you is Xie Shan.

many of these varieties I never even heard of so forgive me of my lack of knowledge there may citrus varieties I have just never heard of

I have been to several citrus expos where they held citrus tasting contest. All and I mean All, of the ones that I attended the winner was Xie Shan.

it not going to be easy to find some of those varieties around here

Good luck Nick, nice looking tree. My LxN (Carrizo) has been very slow to bear fruit. Planted in June of 2012, then moved in 2016,,,, this is the first year that it is developing fruit... and it's loaded!

I'm looking forward to trying the Xie Shan, three grafts took last year and are growing fast. It'll probably be 4 or more years for them to bear.

I've got a 'Xie Shan' with fruit for the first time. We'll see how a smaller plant does. Going to probably graft this one for gifts to other citrus nuts locally.

Although, I think Harris Citrus Nursery might sell Xie Shan pretty economically.

I've looked for and tried ordering Xie Shan and Dekapon locally for the past 2 years with no luck. So this was the next best thing I could find :) that was hard to get.

Nova Lee is definitely better than either of its parents. I have gotten the opportunity to taste all three.

However, I personally prefer the type of taste of Shasta Gold over Nova Lee, since it is more sour and aromatic, but that could just be personal preference. The type of people who like a mandarin like Dancy will probably like Nova Lee.

I like the sweet fruits because I can pick them when they are still mostly green when I want something with a little bit more of a bite to it.

Steve

I finally tried some home grown LxN fruits this year. I started testing one at the end of Feb and it was too early. It didn't fully develop their flavors until April. All the citrus were delayed by 2-3 months this year. A friend in san jose had her last LxN towards mid-may and it was sweet. I didn't get any fruit set this year so no tasting next year. It's a known alternate and moderate bearer. Looks like an orange. Very bright in color. Love the color.

thank you for the info Junk, my LxN is loaded with fruit so I look forward to tasting next year. I did realize the LxN could be so late. Incidentally, i picked the last fo my Gold Nuggets a week ago. Still good!

Hi! I just discovered Super Nova Mandarins for the first time in my life 3 months ago. They are, hands down, my fave citrus ever. interesting looking with a knob on top;super easy to peel with very little pith;seedless; smooth and sweet flavor. They are sooooo good that I ate 4 in a row the first time. I keep telling my friends about them. And, I actually shared with a client who then found a LeexNova “Super Nova” = patented name, tree for me which arrived today!!!

I saw some folks on this message board have never tried them. I have searched high and low in So Cal/LA in shops and canNOT find them in the stores. The only place I can source them when they don’t sell out lickity split is Weee! online grocer. It’s where I randomly discovered and tried them. Here is a referral link where we all win a lil’ discount if you use my link. ***They are listed as SUPER NOVA MANDARINS *** https://www.sayweee.com/invite_friends/landing?referral_id=7495976&lang=en

You can set an alert for when the 🍊Super Novas 🍊are in stock.

Yes! Delivery only, to your doorstep. It’s a fun shop as there are other ethnic veggies and fruits I have never seen. So, I try one or two new items each order.

photo credit to the reviewer on Weee!

LxN is definitely better than Gold Nugget, in my opinion.

my tree is loaded with small fruit right now so hopefully many come to maturity in spring 2022

My Lee x Nova tree gave me no fruit the first year. The 2nd year I got two from the tree. The 3rd year, I got one. This is the 4th year, and I see about ten hanging on the tree for dear life, lol! By the way, every year the tree is covered in blooms that becomes tiny little fruits -- all of which fell off when they reach pea-size. The few fruits that I was able to eat were very sweet, but had thick rind and did not taste very Mandarin-y.

I am loosing almost every fruit on my Fukushu trees as well.

Right now it has 1 fruit still hanging.

Steve

yes most all of my mandarins dropped all of their fruit this year. It is very disappointing. My lemons and limes are doing well but not my 15 mandarins trees. A couple of them have a few fruit.

@Nick (9b) Modesto Area - How is this year's harvest on the Lee X Nova's? This is my best harvest after planting the citrus in 2019 (12-18" from Four Winds in 2019). The first one I picked was a bit sour/hard to peel, but I should be getting close to ready. I also picked my first 2 satsuma's, which almost appears to be ready before the LxN's. The bottom 2 pictures are my LxNs. The only oddity is that the mandarin seems to produce 2 different fruit types (large rough vs small smooth).

@Nick Wenger Here's my Lee x Nova this year. If they're like the ones from last year, they would be sweet (but not very mandarin-y tasting) with rather thick skin. The peeled skin dries up very nicely and I would use it in various cooking recipes.